Moon and Shield
by InfinityIllusion
Summary: Ichigo was sent to form ties with the British Magical Community and Orihime tagged along to see her adopted cousins. Somehow, life become more complicated with the addition of Harry Potter, the Ministry of Magic, and the incompetence of the British Soul Society. fem!Ichigo
1. Prologue: New Relations, of a Sort

**This is probably the longest of my prewritten stories. Hope you enjoy it!**

**Disclaimer: Kubo-sensei owns ****Bleach**** and J. K. Rowling owns ****Harry Potter****. I am not a Japanese male, nor a British female – I don't own either. There would be GrimmIchi if I owned ****Bleach****.**

**Warnings: hinted shoujo-ai/ hinted light femslash (neither actually occur, it's just what people think), some language, Fem!Ichigo.**

**Key:**

"Harry" Native language spoken (English in the UK, Japanese in Japan)

"_Harry"_ Native language thought/emphasis on a word in narrative or speech

"Harry" Foreign language (Japanese in the UK, English in Japan)

"_Harry_" Foreign language thought

"**Harry**" Shiro/Zangetsu in Ichigo's mind

**Enjoy!**

**Prologue: New Relations, of a Sort**

One day, when Harry was around the age of five, the Dursleys received a piece of male from Japan. Apparently the adopted Evans sister had died and they were invited to her funeral. Petunia dithered, but ultimately decided that they should attend, if only to keep up appearances in case anyone else heard. Of course they brought Dudley with them, to "widen his horizons." Harry stayed with Mrs. Figg.

When the Dursleys returned, they brought two other children with them. These were the son and daughter of Harry's aunt-not-by-blood, he learned.

Petunia had been closer to this not-sister than she had to Harry's own mother. There had been frequent conversations about this woman in previous years, speculating on her children, husband, and job. These new cousins were therefore better cared for than Harry himself. That the eldest, the son, was of age and ready to begin working full time may also have aided in their better treatment.

While the siblings lived at Privet Drive, Harry's workload decreased with the extra assistance the young girl, Orihime, gave him in the garden. In order to ensure that nothing seemed amiss, Harry was given more food and opportunities to play during this time. He would play with the shy girl, even though she was more than a few years older than him.

All too soon, the siblings departed for Japan, once the eldest had secured himself a job.

~IiI~

The two siblings did not return for the next few summers, but soon another letter came. Again it bore the sad tidings of the death of the eldest, Sora. The young girl wished to remain in Japan with family friends instead of moving to Britain, but the Dursleys and Harry were still invited to the funeral.

This time, Harry was permitted to attend with the Dursleys, since the young girl who had managed to touch the hearts of the Dursleys specifically asked for him. So they left.

~IiI~

The airports were busy, loud, and slow. The time spent in the plane felt longer than the ten hours (1) that it was, especially with Dudley constantly complaining. Soon though, they reached the terminal, were permitted to disembark, claim their luggage (which Harry was forced to carry the most of), and hail a taxi to deliver them to the hotel.

Check in was relatively easy, as no shouting was required on the part of Vernon, and they hurried to their rooms to change. Dudley of course required his own room, with Harry on the floor.

Quickly, the Dursleys found their suits or dress and moved to the bathrooms to change, leaving Harry to find the darkest, best fitting clothes he packed. While searching in his bag, which held more than it appeared, Harry discovered a white dress shirt, black slacks, and dress shoes that all looked as if they would fit him. He didn't remember packing these clothes, but shrugged if off, thinking that Petunia might have snuck them in so he didn't embarrass the Dursleys at the funeral.

Dressing quickly, he waited by the door in Petunia and Vernon's room for the Dursleys. Suddenly Vernon barreled in.

"Where did you get those clothes, Boy?!" Vernon shouted.

Harry, immediately surmising that Petunia had _not_ give the clothes to him, did the only thing he could do that would still permit him to attend the funeral. He lied.

"Sora bought these for me when he and Orihime lived with us. He though I would grow into them and insisted that a man needed at least one good pair of clothes."

Vernon observed Harry though squinted eyes, trying to determine if Harry was lying or not. Given that Vernon still hadn't discovered that most of Dudley's tantrums were faked, Harry wasn't too worried. Also, Sora had taken a liking to Harry, much to Vernon's displeasure.

Deciding that Harry was probably telling the truth, Vernon turned back to the bathroom to hurry Petunia along.

Dudley soon arrived, looking for all the world like a stuffed pig in a costume. It wasn't complementary.

Finally Petunia finished, courtesy of Vernon "rushing" her ("Honestly dear, I must look my best. Who knows who will be there!").

The group tromped to the elevators and was soon directed to a cab, which the front desk had called for them at Petunia's request. They settled for a short ride to the nearest train station, since it wouldn't do for Petunia to ruin her hair, and boarded the next train to Karakura, where Orihime had lived with her brother.

As the train began to move, Harry starred blankly at the scenery flashing past the window as he sat alone at one end of the train car. Vernon had ensured that Harry, despite his dress, was to be associated with the Dursleys by not means whatsoever. Insurance in the event something "freakish" happened.

The gentle sway of the train coupled with the monotonous, "katan-katan, katan-katan…" of the wheels on the track lulled Harry to sleep with visions of his auburn haired cousin.

**If this is the length people want, I have the first 12 chapters already written. If you want longer chapters, please let me know, but keep in mind that I'll run out of prewritten chapters faster. It is summer, but I've somehow acquired a life that must be attended, so I'll try and set up a regular updating schedule and stick to it. The first few posts will likely be quicker depending on their reception and how much time I have.**

**Please leave a review, constructive criticism or praise!**

**~InfinityIllusion~**


	2. Death, a Dragon, a Knight, a Princess

**Thanks to RocketDwarf, RandomAsRainbows, IceAbyss1037, and Orange3WhiteSkew for reviewing this story!**

**RandomAsRainbows: Harry is currently about 7 years old now. Also, Ichigo, Orihime, and Tatsuki are about 14.**

**AN: Yes, Ichigo is FEMALE in this fic. Bear in mind that Harry is 7 and seeing someone with short hair, wearing jeans and a t-shirt at this age, and having a lower voice makes kids think that the person in question is male. Or at least my brother thought so at that age.**

**Also! I'm messing with cannon as to when Orihime meets Ichigo, and that Dudley will be the same age as Harry.**

**Warnings: future hinted shoujo-ai/hinted light femslash (neither actually occur, it's just what people think), some language, Fem!Ichigo.**

**Key:**

"Harry" Native language spoken (English in the UK, Japanese in Japan)

"_Harry"_ Native language thought/emphasis on a word in narrative or speech

"Harry" Foreign language (Japanese in the UK, English in Japan)

"_Harry_" Foreign language thought

"**Harry**" Shiro/Zangetsu in Ichigo's mind

**Enjoy!**

**Chapter 1: Death, a Dragon, a Knight, and a Princess**

The Dursleys switched trains once (nearly leaving Harry behind) before reaching Karakura. Double-checking their orientation against the map provided by the invitation and the enlarged map on the wall of the train station, the Dursleys and Harry made their way to the funeral home. Apparently Sora had, for whatever reason, desired a Western funeral.

They quietly entered and found a closed casket surrounded by many Asian people, presumably all Japanese. The man's sister was off in a corner accepting condolences with two other teens. Neither of her friends would have been welcome within the Dursley home, but since they were they for moral support, Vernon and Petunia felt that an exception could be made for the normally cheerful girl.

One appeared to be a tomboy, with longer, spikey black hair that framed her face quite nicely. She wore black slacks and a lighter, grey blouse, looking uncomfortable but at least formally dressed. Her counterpart was a slightly taller male with vivid orange hair cut short, which also spiked out on its own accord. He, however, wore black jeans and a t-shirt with white Japanese characters on one sleeve.

Together, the two masculine teens seemed to stand guard over Orihime, like a dragon and a knight protecting the princess from the rest of the world instead of fighting each other. "_Well,_" Harry thought, "_at least she has people to care for her here. I would hate for her to be like me at the Dursleys, even if they seem to like her now._"

The girl, when she caught sight of the Dursleys and Harry, rushed over. Her guardians trailed after her, as their titles that Harry gave them suggested was their duty.

Reaching the British family and their ward, Orihime said tearfully, "Thank you for coming. I know it was a very long trip. S-s-sora-niisan w-would have b-been very hap-py that you all c-came…" That was as far as she got before she broke down completely. Hugging the person closest to her, who happened to be Harry much to Petunia's displeasure, she held him like a lifeline and sobbed. Her friends looked on awkwardly. They were her guardians – they were supposed to prevent events like this from happening to avoid dealing with the tearful aftermath. No princess that had been protected by such forces should ever be forced to deal with such sadness, but life isn't the fairy tales Harry has read in his Sanctuary and he knew that all too well.

The orange-haired teen scratched the back of his head and moved forward to relieve Harry from the weight of the mourning girl. He proceeded to rub her back in circles and whisper something to her in Japanese. Whatever he said calms her down slightly, enough that she could regain her feet and sobs no longer wrack her body, though tears still fell.

Harry gave the other male a grateful look. He has no experience comforting anyone, only animals, and even less experience of receiving comfort. He has vague impressions of the nurse or his teachers once telling him he would be fine if he skinned his knee back when he first started school, before the Dursleys had made him seem like a bad child. Now even the teachers blamed him for his cuts and scrapes and bruises.

The other boy dipped his head in acknowledgement of Harry's gratitude and led Orihime from the room. This seemed to prompt the tomboy into speaking in accented English.

"Thank you for coming. I am Tatsuki Arisawa. Please feel free to pay your respects. Ichigo will be back with Orihime-chan soon."

Although the speech seemed partially memorized, the Dursleys nodded and left Dudley and Harry with the newly introduced Tatsuki.

Awkward silence reined while the trio waited for Orihime to return due in part to the language barrier, in part to the fact that Tatsuki was a girl, and in part to the other fact that no one is really comfortable at a funeral.

Puffy, red, and tear-stained though his cousin's face was, Harry was relieved to see her when she returned.

"Hey, Orihime. Are you gonna be ok?"

She sniffed and nodded slowly while the boy threw his arm around her shoulders. Orihime gave him a timid smile in return. He just ended up looking embarrassed.

"I think so. Eventually. Tatsuki-chan and Kurosaki-chan will help."

Dudley, with his usual (read: nonexistent) tact, interrupted Harry's response.

"Why are you so quiet and teary. Go back to being your bubbly self, chatter box self, you ditz. Suck it up_._"

Harry, Orihime, and Tatsuki froze. Ichigo, however, glowered at Dudley. The air thickened with palpable tension from the teen's fury, enhanced perhaps by some small amount of supernatural power.

"Exactly." The teen said in a slightly rough voice. "She just lost her brother. Her only remaining close family. She has the right to grieve. It would be odd if she did not. I am not sure how Inoue-chan came to know you, but you are very rude and I wish you had not come. It does no good to disrespect the dead or the living by telling those that remain to, as you say, 'Suck it up.'" Anger laced every word the teen spat at the seven year old, finishing with a disgusted, "Ahou."

The teen looked as if he would expound upon the insults, for that was obviously what it was, but Orihime tugged at his shirt and whispered something into his ear. He shook his head, but backed off, some fury abating from his chocolate colored eyes. The other girl looked as if she would willingly take the boy's place, instead beating up Dudley with her fists, but Orihime stopped her, too.

Suddenly the elder Dursleys appeared and ushered Dudley out the door after bidding Orihime a hasty farewell, leaving Harry to be literally dragged behind them as he attempted to also say goodbye.

That would be the last Harry would see of his Japanese cousin for the next eight years.

**Ending it there because it works.**

**Translation:**

Ahou – literally means idiot, but in Tokyo has a worse connotation than Baka (stupid, fool) (conversely, Baka has the worse connotation in the Kansai area, while Ahou has the less harsh connotation). Or at least that's what my dad told me in a slight rant a few years ago.

**If Ichigo, Orihime, and Tatsuki seem to have advanced skills with English, I'm chalking it up to the fact that all three are quite smart (see the ranking in volume 3 or 4, somewhere in there). Also, Orihime lived for a summer in England for this, so that'll help her, too.**

**I will likely start making the chapters longer after this one, but it will really depend on where good stopping points are.**

**Thanks so much for your reviews! They made my day (and seriously distracted me from studying, but hey, you got another chapter out of it.) I'm also really impressed by the number of hits my two stories have received thus far!**

**Leave a review please!**

**~InfinityIllusion~**


	3. The Return of the Princess

**A/N:** Thank you very much for your reviews **Maverick14th **and **RocketDwarf**, and all the rest who left favorites and alerts! Heck, even the number of hits is a compliment (still feel free to leave a review though XD)! I've got requests for longer chapters, so here's one. Bear in mind that the longer the chapter, the sooner I use up what's prewritten, so updates will slow a bit what that happens (it's a while off yet).

**NB:** This is CHAPTER 3! I posted twice on the 11th. Go back and reach chapter 2 if you haven't already!

**Warnings**: some language? This chapter is pretty tame. Oh, SPOILERS FOR GOBLET OF FIRE, on the off chance you haven't read it!

**Key (CHANGED!):**

"Harry" Native language spoken (English in the UK, Japanese in Japan)

"Harry" Foreign language (Japanese in the UK, English in Japan)

_Harry _Thought/emphasis on a word in narrative or speech

**Harry** Shiro/Zangetsu in Ichigo's mind

**Chapter 2: The Return of the Princess**

Several summers passed, Harry received his Hogwarts letter and Hogwarts began to consume his mind. Slowly he forgot his Japanese not-cousin-by-blood. Then, the summer after the Triwizard Tournament (which became the Quadwizard, but that just doesn't have the same ring), after Cedric's death, Voldemort's revival, another letter from Japan came. Unlike its predecessors (third times the charm!), it contained good news. Or, rather, at least it didn't inform them of another death.

Apparently, Orihime had finished college and one of her friends had recently been given a position in the foreign affairs division. Orihime had enough money saved to buy a round trip ticket to England, and was wondering if the Dursleys and Harry would be in Surrey for the first two weeks of August.

The Dursleys' reply was favorable. Orihime had managed to soften their hearts to her, even keeping them thus despite her absence. Also, if she had friends in the government, especially the foreign affairs department (division must have simply been a misspelling), then Vernon might be able to secure more contracts overseas and further improve his position within Gunnings. Connections were, after all, constantly on Vernon and Petunia's minds.

As excited as Harry was to see his better cousin again, the time of her visit meant that he would have to stay with the Dursleys for the vast majority of the summer. Although, it wasn't as if his friends or anyone else were telling him about anything that was happening in the Wizarding World. All he had were vague letters that promised explanations sometime in the undetermined future. Needless to say, this pissed him off to no end.

~IiI~

The first of August dawned early. Petunia and Harry were rushing to finish the cleaning in time for Orihime's arrival – Petunia didn't trust Harry with certain portions of the house that would need to be suitable for a "young lady," so Petunia was reduced to helping clean.

Despite having arrived with her friend the day before, Orihime decided to try and at least partially recover from jetlag before seeing the family. Harry wasn't entirely sure why Petunia was putting such effort into cleaning the bathroom of all places (it was just going to become dirty again), since Orihime had decided to bunk with her friend at the hotel in order to avoid inconveniencing the Dursleys.

Then it was noon and the doorbell was being rung.

The Dursleys and Harry lumbered (mostly Vernon, as Dudley had slimmed down after starting boxing a few years back) forward to answer the door.

Vernon unlocked the door and wrenched it open to present a _very_ well endowed young woman with auburn hair and the six petal-ed flower hairpins Sora had given Orihime so very long ago during that summer spent together. She wore her hair long, past her shoulder blades to the middle of her back and a long skirt with a cap-sleeved shirt. Her grey eyes sparkled with the same excitement and innocence they held before Sora died, but the ditzy-ness was gone (at least initially).

Suddenly the ditzy-ness is back as Orihime lunges forward to hug the closest person with a shout.

"Uncle Vernon!" Somehow, she manages to encompass most of the bulk that is Vernon in her arms.

Switching victims, she cries, "Aunt Petunia!"

Stepping away slightly, she enthusiastically asks, "How are you both?"

While the two adults respond that they are "doing well, thank you," Harry attempted to comprehend the drastic change in his cousin. Previously she had been shy, which had hindered her natural bubbly personality. Now she had obviously grown more confident to bless the world with that optimism.

However, Harry's surprise was nothing on Dudley's. With his jaw literally hanging open, the surprise was written in large, neon letters (that flashed!), above his head. Admittedly, Orihime was the most beautiful girl that Harry had seen since meeting Fleur. Since he _had_ met Fleur, it was much easier to resist doing something similar.

A slightly roughened alto voice floated from behind the mass of bodies in the doorway (well, predominantly the mass of one body).

"Hime-chan, you have to let them invite you in. I'm sure you don't want your entire family reunion to be in a doorway. Those tend to become cramped."

Releasing Vernon from his second hug with a slight blush, Orihime allowed herself to be led farther into the entryway. Her friend followed. Although dressed in more feminine clothes, Harry recognized the teen that had told off Dudley at Sora's funeral. Of all the people he'd seen since, Harry had never seen that same shade of orange. That was saying something considering all the wizards he'd seen.

Wearing skinny jeans and a loose, lightweight graphic t-shirt that hung off a shoulder, the bright orangette was truly unmistakable.

Despite the obvious brightness of the other female's presence, the Dursleys were completely preoccupied with Orihime, uncharacteristically ignoring the other woman. To be fair, the bright haired woman was managing to stand quite unobtrusively in the shadows behind her friend.

~IiI~

Once the fuss over Orihime settled down, the Dursleys turned their attention to the orange-haired woman.

Orihime turned back to her companion with a quick, "Gomen!" Gesturing with her right hand at the woman, she announced, "Everyone, this is one of my best friends, Ichigo Kurosaki."

The newly introduced Ichigo offered a hand to Vernon, which he took eagerly and vigorously began to shake, despite Ichigo's appearance as a "punk."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Dursley." Her expression was one of detached politeness, but Harry would have sworn that prior to Orihime bringing attention to her, Ichigo had been wearing a scowl. Then again, it was also slightly weird that the woman was shaking hands with all of the Dursleys and not giving them hugs, as most of the wives and daughters of Vernon's business dealings were wont to do. Although, it would have seemed odd, despite not knowing the woman at all, to see her hug someone. It was just the feeling she gave off.

Extending a hand to Petunia, Ichigo continued. "It is very nice to meet you all. Orihime has told me of many pleasant memories she has of visiting you." Somehow, Harry felt that while the statement was true, similar things could not be said for the woman's _own_ memories of the family. Remembering how she'd chewed out Dudley, Harry would be lying if he said (or thought) that it wouldn't be lovely to see the Dursleys chewed out in a similar fashion.

Upon moving on to Dudley, Ichigo's polite smile seemed to slip slightly, allowing a small smirk to appear.

"You must be Dudley, yes?" This was accompanied by another extended hand. Dudley took the hand and shook it, looking slightly worried about that smirk. _Maybe he actually remembers the person who gave him such a tongue lashing all those years ago!_ Harry thought, excited at the prospect of seeing Dudley be thoroughly embarrassed once again. _Then again…I'm not sure he has enough brain cells firing at once to remember that…_

Ichigo studied Dudley for a moment while they shook hands, as if sizing him up. Then she said, to the surprise of everyone – except Orihime, "You box." It wasn't a question. "Would you like to spar with me sometime?" Petunia looked like she was going to faint. "The self-defense trainer will kill me if I don't keep working out." That seemed to calm Petunia down…slightly. Vernon was surprised, but puffed up with the idea that His Dudley could help some government person. Dudley still seemed wary, in a moment of uncharacteristic insight, then nodded.

Harry could understand Dudley's hesitance. The woman matched Dudley's height inch for inch, but despite her slender frame, there something…predatory in her aura.

Harry mentally snorted when he realized that Dudley was most likely agreeing to spar with Ichigo for the simple reason of trying to impress her, never mind the fact that the woman was seven years his senior.

Harry wasn't too worried about Ichigo. She had asked for it – literally – and seemed like not only could she take care of herself, but would be incredibly hard to impress. Ichigo might not win, if all she knew was self-defense, but it would be funny to see Dudley try and hit her. It wasn't _gentlemanly_ to hit girls, something Petunia had been adamant in instilling within Dudley as a child.

Then Ichigo turned to him. Proffering her hand once more, Ichigo simply gave Harry a smirk and a wink. Assuming it was for the previous scene with Dudley, Harry smiled back slightly. Perhaps waiting this long, despite his friends' lack of communication, would be worth it.

With introductions out of the way, the group moved to the kitchen.

Harry automatically moved to help with the food, as did, surprisingly, Ichigo. Orihime made to help, but one look from Ichigo and she sat down sheepishly.

Petunia dealt with the food and Ichigo the drinks, leaving Harry to ferry the plates and cups to the table.

Over lunch, the conversation turned inevitable to Ichigo's job.

"So," Vernon began. "What exactly _is_ your job?"

Ichigo smiled slightly, though she wanted to smirk. "I'm technically the ambassador's understudy right now. I have two weeks to learn how he runs things here and temporarily return to Japan with a report before returning for a yearlong stay. I'm being provided a house and furniture, but that's currently being set up, so I'm in a hotel for now. Upon my return, the house should be set up."

Stunned, Vernon was reduced to some stuttered sentences as he tried to comprehend exactly what Ichigo was here to do. "Er, that's quite impressive. And you're only…?"

Ichigo's smirk crept closer to the surface of her face. "I'm 22."

The Dursleys and Harry were stunned.

"Yeah, Hime-chan, a couple of our friends, and I all finished high school while taking a handful of college classes, so we were able to finish college in 2 years or less going full time (1). I was promoted quite quickly because I inadvertently settled a dispute between tow ambassador's kids, which could have resulted in a major scandal."

"Only you, Ichi-chan."

"Ichi-chan" glowered.

**Alrightly, I'm stopping there, since if I continue, then there'll be a really short chapter for the next update and it will flow smoother if I keep the two prewritten short chapters together as one.**

**Notes:**

(1) I fully admit to BS-ing this, for the simple reason that I'm not sure it would: a) be allowed in Japan, and/or b) if Ichigo and co. would really have enough time to do that plus their patrols and various other battle duties.

**Sorry IceAbyss1037, Mom dragged me out to terrorize the people on the road as she attempts to teach me to drive with a stick. On the upside, no one died, I didn't hit anything, and I didn't go off the road!**

**By the way, Orihime: with Ishida or Ulquiorra? Or someone else? I've already decided Ichigo's pairing. Sorry. Remember, the femshash doesn't actually happen (unless you really want it to) it's just people's perceptions.**

**Also, Harry: Draco? Blaise? Someone else?**

**Let me know what you think!**

**~Illusion~**


	4. Dinner Reactions

**A/N:** Thanks to the following for their review: **killroy225, RocketDwarf, Silver Question, The Greatest Fool in Existence, RandomasRainbows, and Tango Dancer**. The lot of you made my day(s)! Much thanks to everyone who put this story on their Alert list or Favorited! Love y'all.

**Silver Question**: Indeed, I agree with you. May I take your review as a vote for Drarry?

**Sorry for taking awhile! Exams (even if I have to "study" for them) take time, as I'm sure you've all experienced. Thankfully they're all completed!**

**So far, people, UlquiHime wins, so UlquiHime it will be. I still need Harry pairings, but he's got a ways to go before I get him tangled up in romance.**

**Pairing:**

**UlquiHime: 3**

**IshiHime: 1**

**Harry/femBlaise: 1**

**Harry/Draco (or the other way 'round): 1(?)**

**Disclaimer (that I've forgotten to do for two chapters): "If wishes were horses, beggars would ride…" and I'd own both. Sadly, that isn't the case.**

**Warnings: language? not really.**

**Enjoy!**

**Chapter 3: Dinner Reactions**

Suitably impressed by Ichigo's accomplishment, Vernon and Petunia attempt to curry favor with the 22 year old throughout the rest of dinner. Dudley and Harry conversed with Orihime, not as interested in politics.

"So, Orihime, what are you doing now?" Harry asked, as Dudley was still fairly shell-shocked by Orihime's appearance. She had the type of body that the girls Dudley took out tried to imitate. _Too bad they're "related" and it would completely freak out his parents if he were to date her._ Harry thought viciously at Dudley. With a scowl, he continued, _Not that there's anyone I've meet that's good enough for her._

Outside of Harry's head, the conversation continued. "Oh, I'm training to be a doctor! Since I'm always patching up my friends for one reason or another, I was thinking of specializing in surgery or field medicine, but staying up to date in general medicine (not that it isn't required)."

"Wow," Dudley finally said. "I sometimes get hurt in my boxing matches, but I don't think I'd want to go into medicine just for that. There's also too much work involved."

_Wow, Dudley,_ Harry thought, _you just demonstrated how you DIDN'T listen to the most important part of what she said: she's doing it for her friends. Why they're always hurt I'm not sure, though… It's kind of suspicious._

"No, I don't get into fights, really. I mean, sometimes people end up fighting about me – like that time four summers ago, when I got kidnapped – (1)"

"What?!" Harry and Dudley exclaimed in unison, a feat likely to never be repeated.

"Yup!" Orihime nodded her head with a bounce, as if kidnappings happened everyday, "but Ichi-chan and the rest of our friends came and saved me, so it was fine! And no one died, so that was even better!"

Harry and Dudley just stared at the woman. _Died? What the heck?_

Then Ichigo joined the conversation when she saw the looks the two teens were giving her friend.

"Hime-chan," she sounded slightly exasperated, but mostly amused, "what did you tell them now?"

"She was telling us about when she got kidnapped," Dudley said. Harry was more interested in the fact that his other cousin was, apparently, a fellow trouble magnet.

"Oh." Ichigo grimaced. "Yeah, that was…interesting."

"Actually, despite a few parts, it was rather fun!" Orihime interjected.

Now Ichigo was starring at Orihime, too. Then she started to laugh. It was a rich sound, slightly husky like her voice was, but warm and comforting.

"Yes, well, the fact that you met Ulquiorra has nothing to do with that "fun," right?"

Orihime blushed and pouted slightly. "Oh, you found Grimmy, so you have no room to talk!"

"Yeah, yeah," Ichigo retorted, but a light blush did stain her cheeks.

Petunia had taken the opportunity to clear the plates, instead of ordering Harry to do it – likely to make her look better. Harry thought that at least one of the two had her proverbial number, if Ichigo's scowl/glare was anything to go by at the very beginning.

Then she proceeded to bring dessert to the table. It was a plum pudding, much like that ill fated one from two years ago that Dobby had purposely dropped. Hopefully no such incident would occur this time.

As Petunia began serving the dessert, Ichigo and Orihime's conversation changed topics before anyone could ask about the aforementioned people. Orihime took one look at the pudding and then gave Ichigo the best puppy-dog eyes that Harry had ever seen, which was something, considering he knew Sirius. Ichigo simply shook her head in response. The gaze intensified. Ichigo shook her head again. The look became, somehow, even more adorable. Finally Ichigo hesitated, where any other person would have become a puddle of goo, and Orihime pressed her advantage.

"Please, Ichi-chan?"

Ichigo sighed in defeat. " Okay, fine, go."

Orihime jumped from her chair and hurried into the hall. Ichigo rubbed her forehead. The Dursleys and Harry were left to look on, confused.

Hand still rubbing her forehead, Ichigo began to explain. "She went to go and get some wasabi and anko to put on her pudding. It's this eating habit that she started in high school that she's never broken. She doesn't mind eating meals without it, but for dessert, it's basically a must. Wasabi is a cousin of horseradish and anko is sweet read bean paste. Just don't think too hard about it and avoid her cooking unless it's actually got those two ingredients in the original recipe. Plenty of people have been victimized by her cooking. To this day, only two people can eat it: Rangiku and Ulquiorra."

The males looked a combination of disgust (at the tastes they imagined) and surprise (that ANYONE could actually eat that combination). Petunia simply nodded in understanding. "Orihime's mother enjoyed hot sauce and mint jelly on everything as a child. Seeing as Orihime's her daughter, I was actually surprised that something like this hadn't happened sooner."

Ichigo hummed in agreement as Orihime finally returned, only to give Ichigo a smile that sent shivers up everyone else's spines. Ichigo appeared unaffected, simply raising an eyebrow. "You're going to have to do better than that, Hime-chan. Unohana-san gives me worse all the time."

Orihime huffed and replied, "That's because you refuse to remain still when you're sick or injured!"

Ichigo grinned, unrepentant.

~IiI~

Dinner was spent learning other anecdotes about the two women's friends in Japan. Apparently there was someone whom Ichigo constantly referred to as a Pineapple who was trying to date one of their other friends, Rukia. The problems they encountered (not limited to: a phobia of rabbits, an overprotective brother that had problems expressing his emotions, the usual threats, some creative threats involving yet more bunnies, a sharpie, a person as a piñata, and a large man named Zaraki with a bat) were humorous and gave some insight as to how they lived in Japan.

Finally Ichigo and Orihime returned to their hotel.

~IiI~

"Well, despite her hair color and clothes, Ichigo seems to be quite a mature woman. Orihime is very lucky to have Ichigo looking out for her. And I do suppose that I cannot fault the woman for her clothes – they're probably the only thing that she can wear and have match her hair that isn't overly formal!" That was Petunia's verdict.

Vernon agreed (not about the clothes, he'd leave those matters to his wife). "Yes, successful, too. I did notice that Orihime has only become slightly less clumsy and accident prone than when she was younger."

Harry thought back to the visit as he cleaned the plates. Yes, he decided, his adopted cousin was clumsy, but Ichigo seemed to be there every time to prevent the accident from getting worse. Orihime would apologize and thank her, but both seemed to know that Ichigo would always be there. It was enough to make him wonder about those two… But then there were those others they mentioned with different, funny names (whose name began with a 'U'?). Also, some of those moves seemed calculated to Harry, as if Orihime was keeping up an act. There wasn't anything to prove this, none of her actions would support it, but it seemed as if there was a little more to his cousin than her seeming inability to walk over a flat, stable surface and not trip.

Dudley, while it must be admitted that he was shallow and took the stereotypical role of muscle-headed jock, was not quite as shallow, biased, and blind as he let on.

Yes, he knew that taunting Harry was wrong, as was beating up children – he'd known for quite some time. It was why, out of the presence of his friends and sometimes his parents, he'd just avoid Harry. If people didn't see him interact with the other teen, they couldn't find out that he was sorry. However, he was trapped by his parents and the "friends" (***coughminionscough*)** that he had made in early childhood, when he'd still sort of thought his actions were agreeable with the rest of society. His life was an act.

He saw Orihime and Ichigo as a chance to redeem himself. Something told him that Ichigo was more than a diplomat and certainly high in the chain of command. He was also more than confident that if she wanted to, his family and he could easily be destroyed for their stupidity in treating Harry the way they did.

Orihime, on the other hand, seemed like a grown version of the ditzy vaguely remembered meeting at the ages of 5 and 7. A little stronger, much bigger, still optimistic and happy, and still a clutz. However, she was no longer truly a ditz. Here eyes were warm, kind, and compassionate, but they also seemed to have darkened, as if she had seen some of the darker aspects of humanity. Yet, she still maintained her inner strength.

While much of these changes can be attributed to growing up, Dudley still thought something was…off. So did Harry if some of the looks he caught were any indication (after all, Dudley had to learn how to read the other to see when to draw the line, parents or no).

He wondered what had transpired over those years between when they had last seen her. She had mentioned the kidnapping, but what was her real relationship with Ichigo – the two seemed much closer than friends, more like sisters or something else. Either way, they were both family to the other.

Their presence had given Dudley a lot to think about. He'd always followed his parents' lead when dealing with Harry, even when he had begun to suspect it was wrong. But he continued his torment of Harry out of the fear that his parents could treat him the same way. If they could do it to one of his cousins, it wouldn't be such a big step for them to do it to him. Hell! They'd nearly tried to force Orihime to do such work, since she was initially a burden on their family, though her brother stopped it before it had begun by working.

Regardless, Dudley did feel sorry for treating his cousin as badly as he had. He felt that, perhaps, this was his chance to make up for his past mistakes and if he had a family more supportive of his changes in attitude, he might actually manage it, even if he had to keep up his acting around his parents.

**OK! So that's their reactions to the two girls.**

**I know some of you are going to be like, "WTF is with Dudley?" But, I'm easing off on him in this one. I figure that by this point, he's grown up a bit, but is still pigeon holed by his parents into being their perfect son – regardless of if he actually is. (Basically, I'm moving up his acceptance of Harry from beginning of book 7 to now – it can't happen over night and he would have had to have some thoughts on it, I think).**

**Also, I'm going to be out of town starting Friday, through Sunday night, so I'll try and write more, but it'll be handwritten. I'll try and get an update by Tuesday on this. K?**

**Please give me feedback on who you want Harry with! It'll give me a better idea of where the story should go. The results of the poles are in the top note.**

**Leave a review?**

**~Illusion~**


	5. Gyms are Universal in their Odor

**A/N:** Alrightly my readers! I'm back from my mini vacations! Thanks to **RandomAsRainbows, FreeTraderBeowolf, Furionknight, Baylee1100, Kleny GingerHead, and asredwer**. It really made my day to see all the review and favorite notices (I could check my email – that's it)!

**Kleny GingerHead:** I'm glad that you like this! Actually, the main character is supposed to be Harry, although both Orihime and Ichigo are secondary main characters. Personally, I'm kinda ambivalent to Orihime in the manga, but here I'm trying to give her a bit more backbone (hey, as a fellow healer, she's gotta spend time with Unohana, who is just plain scary at times!). I do like your suggestion and I'll think about adding it. It will depend on who the character Harry ends up being paired with is, as well as a few plot points. Also, you're totally right about Ichigo's pairing! XD Love those two together! Thanks again – especially for reviewing twice!

**Warnings:** Attempted fight scene (Yay! I got to it!), some language. ALL I KNOW OF BOXING I LEARNED FROM _ASHITA NO JOE_ (a boxing manga), Ichigo might be a _tad_ bit OOC in the end of the middle bit, but the whole "I'm cheerfully going to kill you" side has been seen against bullies/after sparring so I don't think it's too far gone.

**Disclaimer:** If wishes were manga contracts…. I'd be very happy. Unfortunately, they aren't. I also cannot claim ownership to Harry Potter and the related franchises. I'm many things, British is not one of them.

**Pairing Pole:**

Harry/femBlaise:** 2**

Harry/Draco:** 1**

Harry/femDraco: **1**

Harry/Ginny (this isn't my favorite pairing): **1**

Harry/Luna: **1**

**Chapter 4: **

The next day, Ichigo dropped Orihime off at the Dursleys' house before going to work. If the family was surprised in the change of clothing choice the orange-haired girl wore (slacks and a blouse), no one mentioned it.

Orihime bounced around with happiness, trailing after Petunia and Dudley but ahead of Harry on their way to the nearest bus stop. Harry, despite the chores that he would have been forced to do, would have been perfectly happy staying home while the others were away, but was "forced" (read: guilted) by Orihime into joining the rest.

Today, they were going to sight see in London, despite the hour long ride, which due to the number of stops, stretched to be two hours (1). Taking quick looks at everything of interest that they passed – from Big Ben, to the Tower of London, to some malls – the group was exhausted (except for Orihime) and they returned to the bus station after grabbing some food for the ride (2).

As Harry was drifting off to sleep beside Orihime (who sat with him despite the weak protests by his Aunt) he wondered about his adopted cousin. She had made a few passing comments on their trip that made him worried about her life in Japan. When they saw some torture instruments, he'd heard her mutter, "I think Kurotsuchi-san has some of those…" while looking on impassively.

Before Harry's tired mind could continue that…honestly rather disturbing train of thought, he fell asleep and worried no more, for a few hours at least.

~IiI~

A week passed of similar excursions until the weekend came. Dudley took Ichigo, Orihime and a reluctant Harry to his gym while the elder Dursleys prepared fro some meeting or another. They were, as the teens of the house could attest, always looking for some way to gain an advantage or favor from someone. Most would call this "brown-nosing."

That morning Ichigo had reminded Dudley of her challenge for a spar:

"Oi, Dudley. How 'bout that match that you promised me? I'm sick of looking at paper work!" This statement (really, the question was anything but) was accompanied by a scowling face and a slight vein ticking in Ichigo's right temple.

Dudley wisely nodded.

~IiI~

Orihime continued to bounce on the way to the gym. She was simply excited to watch Ichigo fight in a situation that didn't have the underlying tension of possible death. Ichigo was beautiful to watch, with a grace that was hinted at in her movements outside of the battlefield. She giggled with glee at seeing how this fight would turn out, more for the sake of watching people's expressions than the actual outcome. Ichigo would obviously win, how she went about it would be the entertainment.

Harry, while interested in seeing the fight between Dudley and Ichigo, had absolutely no desire to be trapped in a hot, smelly gym where most of the people believed him to be a walking, talking punching bag (3).

When the group entered, Dudley was greeted with various forms of welcome – from grunts to actually "Hullo"s. The two women were, being the only females in the establishment, ogled unabashedly by the other males. In response to the ogling, Ichigo's scowl deepened and she stood protectively between the other boxers or trainers and Orihime. A low growl emanated from her throat, although only Orihime could hear it. Harry was, thankfully, ignored.

Dudley went about to ensure that the ring was clear, quickly clearing people off of the space. No one wanted to go against the Dursley (4).

Ichigo began stretching, soon to be joined by Dudley once the ring was secured. Orihime and Harry stood close to Ichigo. There was no point in tempting Fate. Besides, Ichigo's glares prevented anyone from actually getting within ten feet of them and that was the most space that could be allowed to maneuver around the foreigners and Harry.

With an unspoken signal, Ichigo and Dudley entered the ring, one of the trainers equipped with a whistle to referee the match. Dudley had his own boxing gloves and headgear on, while Ichigo had simply taped her hands and refused anything else vehemently (5). "I'm training to fight bear handed. In what street fight do you see people wearing boxing gloves?" was her reasoning. Harry had to admit that she had a point. Orihime looked completely unconcerned.

"Don't worry, Harry! Ichi-chan's been fighting her whole life – she knows what she can and can't do!" She then proceeded to giggle at a silent joke.

Still worried, but feeling slightly better after Orihime's reassurances, Harry turned his attention to the match.

Ichigo had stripped off her oversized T-shirt to reveal the form fitting tank top underneath, keeping her leggings and high-top sneakers. She waited in the corner nearest Orihime and Harry for the spar to begin.

Dudley was wearing his usual workout clothes that he left at the gym for his training sessions. Needless to say, the odor was quite the offense and may have contributed to some of Dudley's more recent wins. He waited in the corner opposite Ichigo.

The trainer raised his hand and placed the whistle in his mouth. With a sharp, ear-ach inducing sound, the bout began, to the audience's pleasure. It wasn't everyday a woman walked into the gym for more than a minute, let alone actually fought.

Dudley and Ichigo circled each other, one slightly wary but confident, the other amused. A minute passed and Dudley rushed at Ichigo.

~IiI~

Harry was stunned. While he had heard about Dudley's successes in the ring (it was impossible not to when living with the Dursleys) and seen some of his "practices" on a few neighborhood kids, he'd never seen anything like what was occurring in the ring at the moment.

Ichigo, looking completely unconcerned, was dodging all the punches Dudley was throwing at her. Jabs, straights, upper cuts, hooks – it didn't matter, she'd sway out from Dudley's fists. In return, she would tap him in certain places, presumably where he let his guard down.

Essentially, Dudley was having his arse handed to him and he was having a hard time accepting that fact.

Orihime watched with an amused smile on her face, her general air of ditzy-ness greatly diminished.

"Is this really what she learns in self-defense?" Harry asked, awed by the performance.

"Hm…Yup! Dodging people means she doesn't get hit, so that's some self-defense there and those taps she's giving Dudley are all on vital parts that she could hit just as easily as tap, but knocking him out, maiming him, or killing him really aren't things someone should do to a person they're sparring with. Unless you're Zaraki-taicho, but he's just like that."

Harry redirected his attention to stare at her in disbelief. Whether it was the fact that the woman in the ring could kill his cousin or that the two actually knew someone who would maim another in a spar, he wasn't sure, but these women were certainly not to be messed with. Although, looking back at the one-sided spar, he couldn't help but admire the woman who was humiliating Dudley more easily than any other person he'd ever met.

~IiI~

Of course, such a spar soon became quite uninteresting, as Harry and Orihime unfortunately found out. After another ten minutes (Harry was surprised it had taken that long – these guys were known for their muscle and perhaps on their feet strategy, not attention spans) the men and boys of the audience began to disperse. This invariably led to their discovery of Orihime. How she could be overlooked for as long as she had, Harry didn't know, but he was grateful for those minutes that she had been.

"Hey, what's a pretty lady like yourself doing here?"

"Aw, she's gotta be lookin' for some man, ya know? Some one to care for her, not like you fellas – monkeys the lot of ya!"

"Hey, ain't 'e D's cousin?"

"Ya're right, goes't a school like Juvie, don't he?"

"Ya fight, little criminal?"

Before the harassment could be taken to another level, as it was obvious what some of the men wanted from Orihime, a figure dropped from the ring.

"Oi, idiots! Back away from the kiddie and my friend," a bored alto called.

Of course, instead of listening and following the "suggestion," the men turned on the speaker.

"An what about yourself? Jealous that your friend is getting all the attention?"

An evil grin took over Ichigo's face. "Nope, but seeing as I could take all of you and win, I'd suggest not pissing me off. Wait – you already did."

As any relatively sane person with normal self-preservation instincts would, the vast majority of the group scattered. However, as always, there were those who believe that they were invincible.

"Hah, girly, I saw what you were doing to D' – it was nothin'! What'cha gonna do to us, huh? Pull some move from your wimpy self-defense?" The, perhaps, stupidest of the remaining six leered at Ichigo, who still hadn't lost her grin, confident in his abilities and the abilities of his back up.

"Nope, I'm going to use what I learned in eight years worth of karate!"

Cheerfully, she went to town.

~IiI~

"Er, Ichigo?"

"Hmm?"

"…Thanks for helping me."

"No problem."

Ichigo, Orihime, and Harry walked behind Dudley as they returned to 4 Privet Drive. Dudley was put out that despite his technical win against Ichigo due to her sudden departure from the ring while their spar was still occuring, he hadn't really won. Although, he was happy that she was too good for him to hit – he didn't want to have to explain to his mother that he'd broken her cardinal rule. Seeing what she'd done to the six who'd continued to provoke her, Dudley was equally glad at not giving her an opportunity to do the same to him. Not that he would have been able to do anything to her if she had…

Ichigo wandered ahead slightly, leaving Harry with Orihime.

"Er, why is Ichigo so…_happy_ now?"

"Well, it's mostly because she got to spar, in a non-life threatening situation."

"…Excuse me – did you just say _life threatening_? What does that have to do with it?"

Orihime smiled. "Well, her "self-defense" instructor, to quote Ichigo, "has an interesting way of teaching – typically involving me being shoved into various situations of different lethality and him running away with a fan covering his smirk as he says, 'Don't die~!'"

Harry starred. "Okay, that's messed up."

"Mmm, Urahara-san is…different, but he does care about Ichigo, so it's fine. He's also too scared of what she'd do to him if she really did die, let alone what some of her friends would do."

Harry, who'd just been a witness to a small portion of Ichigo's temper, didn't even bother to wonder how the woman would get back at her teacher if she was dead – no doubt she'd accomplish it to spite the man.

However, there was something decidedly off about a woman who fought in street fights, had a "self-defense" teacher that she obviously didn't need who pushed her to continuously end up in life or death situations, and yet worked for the government in diplomacy…. Harry was left to ponder these inconsistences as Orihime skipped ahead to walk alongside her friend.

He wondered when he'd begun to be so paranoid.

**TBC…**

**Um, please don't kill me? I know I said this chapter was supposed to be out last week in "Promise," my Bleach song-fic oneshot…and that very obviously did not happen. Yeah… Do let me know what you thought of the chapter though! I'm leaving for another tournament (my mini vacation, which is sometimes coupled with seeing family or family friends, hence the vacation bit) this Friday. I will, however, be back Monday, although I want to update Connections before I update Moon and Shield again. So, projected update: maybe next Tuesday or Wednesday.**

Notes:

(1) Not entirely sure that it's possible to get there only on public transport, but I'm assuming it is. According to Google Maps, though, it does take about an hour in a car.

(2) Not sure if it's allowed for people to eat on the public transportation (I've been on American and Japanese public transport – both tend to have a no eating on trains policy, but buses are up in the air.)

(3) I do not believe that all gyms are like the one I've described. However, the ones that I've been to do tend to heat up quickly and despite humanity's technological prowess, BO is BO. Also, I highly doubt that all of Harry's torment from others around his age would end after he went to Hogwarts. He'd likely still be harassed while doing chores or wandering around.

(4) "No one wanted to go against the Dursley": Not really due to the fact that he's amazing at boxing (although, he does have to be fairly skilled if what, admittedly, biased information we're given is true), but more due to his penchant for "temper tantrums" and running to Vernon, though the latter is more to help his cover.

(5) While I highly doubt they would actually allow something like this to actually occur in real life, trying to get Ichigo to do something she doesn't want is pretty much impossible. Besides, Ichigo's taken on various opponents whose sneeze would hurt more than Dudley's punches.

**Leave a review?**

**~Illusion~**


	6. A Wand, A Shield, and A Spirit

**A/N: ** Thank you guys for being patient!

Special thanks to: **Drewdragon, Baylee1100, Alex Sparda 'Void of Nothing, RandomAsRainbows, ItsNotLikeILoveYou, Sean Albright, Kelly Gingerhead (have a (very) belated birthday present – I'll write you a oneshot for GrimmIchi if you'd like as a better present), Guest (I'm guessing that since you didn't specify Draco to be female, you want slash – if not, send me a PM or drop me an email – which will be on my profile, though I won't say no to another review!), Freeblue, and another Guest.**

**Pairing Pole:**

Harry/femDraco: **3**

Harry/femBlaise:** 3**

Harry/Luna: **2**

Harry/Draco:** 2 (?)**

Harry/Ginny (this isn't my favorite pairing): **1**

Harry/Blaise/Draco (not necessarily in that order): **1**

**Warnings:** Messing with cannon, attempted fight scene, Shiro (does he need any more explanation? Though he doesn't get much screen time...).

**Disclaimer:** Lemme check: British? Nope. Female? Yup. Old enough? Nope. Therefore, I do not own Harry Potter or any of its affiliations. Lemme try another: Japanese? Not really. Male? No. Old Enough? Nope. And thus I don't own Bleach either. I'm sure you'll all be the first to know if any of these facts change – this is the first place I'd post it.

**On with the story!**

* * *

**Chapter 5: A Wand, a Shield, and a Spirit**

Harry was left to ponder his paranoia (which he was attributing to Mad-Eye Moody, despite never being taught by the man), Orihime's quirks, and Ichigo's own conundrums for the rest of the afternoon and into the evening. Fortunately, the elder Dursleys were occupied by their business party and so would not return to number 4 Private Drive until much later that night.

By default, Ichigo was the cook. Dudley could microwave something or use the oven, but it had to be pre-made; Orihime was a menace, a very sweet menace, but a menace in the kitchen nonetheless; Harry could cook, but was prevented from doing so as Ichigo had noticed he'd done all the cooking and decided to gift him with a night off. That was how Dudley was ordered to set the table, which he did without protest and correctly, Harry was given the duty to pour drinks, and Orihime was to be prevented from entering the kitchen at all costs.

"Wow, Ichi-chan, I didn't know you could make tonkatsu (1)!"

"Hime-chan, who do you think taught Yuzu the basics to cooking?"

"Oh. I thought she just found a book."

"Nah, Okaa-san (2) had taught me a bit and then I learned some more, so I passed all my knowledge on to the only one who was really interested. Karin can make the basics, but Oyaji (3) still burns water."

Orihime giggled.

While the women talked, Dudley and Harry devoured their tonkatsu. Harry processed enough of the conversation to pick up that Ichigo has four other people in her family, but all the nuances are lost. In his defense, he usually didn't get as much as he did that day to eat. Besides, it was really very good – to the point of being even with Mrs. Weasley's cooking!

Dudley caught about as much information as Harry did, although when the conversation turned to Orihime and Ichigo's impending departure, he paid closer attention. He wasn't a complete idiot, so he knew that with the two women gone, Harry was going to be in a world of pain to make up for all that he'd "missed" with them present. Dudley knew that Harry had turned down the annual offer to go to his friend's house this year, instead deciding to leave just a few days earlier to, Dudley assumed correctly, collect his school supplies.

Harry, slowing as his stomach began to feel uncomfortably full, also paid the conversation more attention when the two women discussed their travel plans.

Ichigo apparently had to return a few days before Orihime, but it seemed as if Orihime was contemplating returning early with Ichigo, since many of their friends were taking off time for a week to hang with Ichigo before the woman returned to Britain.

"What? You're going to leave tomorrow?"

Dudley's interruption startled those at the table, especially himself. He was used to having such thoughts, but this was the first time he'd spoken them aloud. Harry was particularly startled.

Ichigo looked sheepish. "Yeah, I've gotta swing by a few places, then head back. Most of the stuff I have to do now is paperwork, so instead of staying, I figured that I'd grab the paper work and spend the time with my friends back in Japan."

"Oh. … You do know that Mum is going to pitch a fit that you didn't give her enough forewarning and let her make you a fancy dinner."

"I'm sure she'll be devastated," Ichigo replied dryly.

"No, really," Dudley said, picking up on the sarcasm. "She actually does like you, more so than she thought she would. I'd even say she admires the way that you've made your place in the world."

"Huh…." Ichigo quieted, thinking about this new side of Petunia Dursley.

Dudley took that as a sign to continue. "I think she's always felt stifled here. Dad doesn't think it's all that proper for a woman to work, or at least he didn't initially, so she never went back after I was born. She's really not as nasty as she'd let you believe, but she needs something to hide behind, or else Dad would get to her completely, so she created that bitchy mask. I think…."

Harry, quite simply, was stunned. Okay, so Petunia may hate him due to her jealousy of Lily's magical ability, but here was actual proof, though second hand and possibly biased, that she was related to Lily! Although kindness couldn't really be counted as a family trait, her acting abilities were certainly on par with his mother's given how she acted around his father during her "crushing" phase. Never once had she let on…

Orihime was pleased that someone had seen though Petunia-oba-san's mask. She needed someone to understand her and Vernon-oji-san was certainly not Orihime's first choice for that person.

Ichigo was bemused. The woman certainly was quite the actor, although if Ichigo thought about it, Petunia's mask was not so different from her own. They both wore them in battle and (at least at some point) had been threatened to be consumed by the masks and the personalities that they represented. Petunia's battles just so happened to be her daily life.

~IiI~

Cleaning up was regulated to both Harry and Dudley, who washed and dried, respectively. Just because Dudley was spoiled hadn't prevented him from learning some of the basics as he'd grown older. After all, he had to practice for Mother's Day, since his father wasn't going to do it (4).

The women stayed and chatted with the boys, preventing an awkward silence to take hold. Ignoring Harry's impending problems heralded by Ichigo and Orihime's (she'd decided to go back with Ichigo, something both Dudley and Harry were glad of, as they doubted her abilities in an airport) imminent departure.

The dishes were soon clean, leaving Ichigo and Orihime to create dessert for the family, requiring the boys to leave so as not to ruin the surprise. Harry wasn't sure he'd know what the dessert was, regardless, but complied with their wishes.

Dudley joined Harry out on the pavement. Harry simply followed where his feet took him, leaving him to mull over his thoughts and observations of his life, of his adopted cousin, and of his adopted cousin's amazing friend. Ichigo was beyond anything that Harry had come across: she was smart, she was kind, she was strong, and she knew how to fight. Harry desired to become as strong a person as Ichigo was, but wasn't sure how to achieve that strength. His own feelings about the woman were muddled as it was, complicating his thoughts further.

One cannot fault Harry, consumed as he was by these thoughts, for not noticing Dudley's presence sooner. Harry had, after all, assumed that the other teen would have met up with the other people in his mock gang and spent the time doing something stupid.

Dudley, contrary to Harry's beliefs, had not been participating in such activities for quite some time. He had to give the illusion that he did, but actually active participation on his part hadn't occurred since he had realized Harry's treatment was wrong. This didn't exonerate Dudley from the beatings he encouraged, however half-heartedly, but it was more than could be said for his father.

Dudley made his presence known to Harry when he said, "Don't go that way," at an intersection. "The gang is there tonight and I'm tired of having to pretend."

Harry, startled, took a few moments to process this information. "…Why should I believe you? This is your "gang" that you're talking about."

The slightly haggard visage that met Harry's eyes helped confirm Dudley's words. "I've never really been the leader of that gang. Piers wanted it – it made him feel secure and powerful – and I needed a cover to not spend every waking minute being forced to emulate my father."

From this surprising confession, Harry's mind latched onto the most inane portion of the statements after a momentary pause. "You know what emulate means?"

Dudley just looked at him. Harry blushed and mumbled, "Sorry. I guess I'm just used to you beating up on everyone, though I'm going to guess that those stories aren't any truer than the ones saying I go to St. Brutus's."

Dudley nodded. "As much as I was taught to dislike you by my parents and taught that violence is an acceptable answer by my father, I learned otherwise in school. We were still in Primary School, but even then I worried that if I stopped acting like the "perfect" son that I would join you in the beatings."

Harry, now fully comprehending of the situation and the topic, just shrugged. "You may have been right. Besides, I suppose that it soon became a habit, to pretend, right?"

Dudley nodded once more in confirmation. Silence reigned for a few moments, until Harry froze.

Harry had previously noticed a slight chill in the air, which he had earlier brushed off as the summer coming to a close, but the mist forming before his face told him otherwise.

Noticing his cousin's eyes go wide, Dudley looked around for the cause of Harry's terror, but found nothing (5).

Quickly pulling Harry to an alley in hopes of waylaying whatever Harry feared, Dudley unknowingly presented Harry and himself as prime targets to their pursuers.

As the air continued to cool and the lights to flicker out, creating a patch of darkness, multiple cloaked figures could be seen. These approaching scraps of fabric were made of something even darker than night, consuming all light as dark holes are won't to do (6).

Harry's breathing became more rapid as Dudley joined him in his terror. Harry pulled his wand from his pocket, whispering, "Expecto Patronum, Expecto Patronum…"

Silver smoke emerged from Harry's wand, but nothing substantial came from his attempts. Still, the figures approached, increasing the dread filling the two teens.

Harry pushed himself in front of his cousin, knowing that the creatures were there for his soul, though would not hesitate to feast on his cousin's soul as well (7).

Concentrating on seeing Ichigo and Orihime, preventing them from coming in contact with these creatures, as well as Ron and Hermione, Harry shouted, "Expectō Patronum!"

A stag burst forth, impaling the closest Dementors on its antlers and forcing them backwards. However, their retreat was hindered by a large triangular shield that sprung from nowhere, glowing with a warm orange light and allowing the stag to actually maim the foul…things.

Suddenly a strange cackling could be heard, actually inspiring more fear in Harry and Dudley than the Dementors. Beyond the shield a white blur could be seen, swinging something, presumably a blade, that actually KILLED the Dementors. Harry could only watch in shock as the remaining Dementors were annihilated. The shield was removed and the white figure moved into the alley, killing the remaining Dementors.

Harry and Dudley were in shock, as the figure turned to face them.

A psychotic grin adorned the male's face, whose hair and skin were bone white, with golden eyes against a black sclera. There was something very familiar about this man, but neither Dudley nor Harry could place him.

"'ey, ge' goin'. Da Queen's mighty wor'ied 'bout ya both." His voice carried the same madness as his smile, though his words made some sense. Neither teen was very keen on remaining in the alley with the man.

~IiI~

As soon as they reached the house, Dudley was pulled into Petunia's traditional hugs and kisses for when a dinner was successful. Harry tried to see beyond the mask that Dudley had informed him about earlier, but was far too tired emotionally and mentally. He gave it up as a bad job, deciding to work on it at a later date.

Thankfully neither of Dudley's parents noticed anything off about their son, or if Petunia did, she didn't mention it.

As they assembled for dessert after washing up, there were no words to describe Harry's delight at finding chocolate, chocolate chip cookies, fresh from the oven. Between himself and Dudley, they finished an even four-dozen (Harry could certainly have matched Dudley's consumption of three-and-a-half-dozen, but figured he would have been punished later for that transgression if he had). Ichigo sneaked him another five-dozen under the table. He wasn't sure how many she'd made, but it certainly would help feed him for a bit.

~IiI~

After dessert, Ichigo made her announcement about leaving, Orihime following up with her own. After being slightly berated by Petunia for keeping this information from her until the last minute (although Orihime's decision was equally last minute) she accepted that Ichigo really, really hated saying "goodbye."

"I've never had much luck with saying 'goodbye,'" Ichigo said. "I never got to say goodbye to my mother or many of the others I've lost. When I have said goodbye, I usually don't see that person for a really long time, so since I'm going to stop by during Christmas and Easter, I won't say 'goodbye'. I'll stick with 'see you later.'"

With a few more words and promises to visit on both Ichigo and Orihime's sides, the women pulled out from number 4's driveway. The family stood there for a minute, as Harry crept away, and retreated into the sitting room for a quiet evening.

**TBC…**

**Again, I apologize for the lateness of this chapter. My dad and I had gotten into an argument and I had to keep my electronics out of sight – preventing me from writing or editing. Thankfully that has cleared up and I'm getting back into things again. Please bear with me as I get back to your PM's!**

**Kelly Gingerhead: I feel like I owe you more than this chapter for you birthday and your wonderful reviews. Like I said at the beginning – I'll write you a oneshot, just let me know any specifics you want (AU, etc.).**

**Notes:**

(1) Tonkatsu – literally pork cutlet, is a piece of pork, dipped in a batter, covered in breadcrumbs called panko, and, at least in my house, pan fried in 1/8 of an inch or so of oil. Served in a bowl over rice with cabbage. (Guess what I wanted for dinner).

(2) Okaa-san – mom/mother

(3) Oyaji – old man/rude way of saying dad

(4) I'm voting that Mother's Day happens in Britain.

(5) OotP: Muggles can't see Dementors.

(6) I claim poetic license over Black Holes!

**Thanks for sticking with me! Leave me a review? Pretty please?**

**~Illusion~**


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